Former England flanker Michael Lipman has been forced to call time on his rugby career.

Lipman has been suffering from the side-effects linked with concussion and after one too many bangs to the head, he has decided to hang up his boots. ''The bottom line is that throughout my career I've had so many bangs to the head and I've had so much," Lipman told WAtoday. ''I've just had too many.

"Enough's enough and when you're body's talking to you like it is now, you've got to listen to it and be sensible because the hardest thing in anything really is to admit that your time is up and to come to terms with it.

''It [headache] is always there and you can feel the pressure in your head and when you start running and training it makes it a lot worse. You're just very confused really, and you're hazy and you're very clouded and not many things make sense.

''You just become very, very tired. You become exhausted straight away and you feel like going to sleep, when it should really be the opposite, because when you start working and training, the endorphins release and you get a pick-up. You shouldn't get totally down the way I've been.''

Lipman made his name in the Premiership at Bristol and then Bath before switching to the Melbourne Rebels in time for their inaugural season in Super Rugby back in 2011. He earned 10 caps for England and also helped Bath lift the European Challenge Cup in 2008 before leaving the club under a cloud a year later.

He was recently linked with a move to the Newcastle Falcons ahead of next season.